At press time, bitcoin has fallen to roughly $7,300. This is $100 less than where it stood yesterday afternoon, though the currency was trading for as high as $7,500 during Tuesday’s evening hours.

The bitcoin arena is something of a mixed bag. For example, China’s president Xi Jinping recently endorsed blockchain technology, stating that it has the potential to heal global economies. Speaking at a recent conference with the Chinese Academy of Sciences this week, Jinping said that the advantages of the blockchain are crucial to the development of the 21st century, and he’s hoping for elevated adoption in China.

“Ever since the start of the 21st century, a new generation of industrial revolution is substantially reshaping the global economic structure with artificial intelligence, the internet of things, and blockchain constantly making application breakthroughs,” he stated.

This marks a serious shift in opinion, as up to this point, China has been one of the strictest countries when it comes to cryptocurrency and blockchain regulation.

On the other hand, popular South Korean digital currency exchange Bithumb has announced it will proceed with a trading ban in 11 countries starting in mid-June. Some of the nations included are Iran, Iraq, Syria, Ethiopia, Serbia, and Trinidad and Tobago. The exchange is eager to enforce anti-money laundering laws ever since its offices were raided in early January, and wants to ensure its customers are safe and protected.

These countries, along with five others, do not possess valid legislation that stands against money laundering and other illicit activities in the financial space, according to company executives. All accounts stemming from these countries will be shut down by June 21. Upbit – South Korea’s fifth-largest cryptocurrency exchange – was also raided in April on suspicious of embezzlement, while four executives from other trading platforms in South Korea have been arrested and charged with fraud.

It is unclear if the announcement bore any negative consequences on the price and caused the drop from yesterday’s high. The good news is that analysts say recovery is likely imminent, and investors have a lot to look forward to in the coming weeks. One source, for example, says that today’s small, but noticeable price drop, is part of a consolidation process after a significantly aggressive move that took the price up by roughly $400 yesterday from the previous day. Bitcoin has been trading with a narrowing range, but market trends still show it moving higher as the pressure from recent sell-offs finally begins to subside.

A heavy supply zone is witnessed at the $7,600 mark, while resistance is likely to occur at $7,560. However, key support has moved up to $7,470.

Another source suggests that bitcoin’s newfound uptrends can be attributed to political activity in Italy and southern Europe. The country’s constitutional crisis and fears of the nation leaving the Euro-zone ultimately led to global stocks and the euro falling overnight, while the U.S. dollar and various cryptocurrencies appear to be gaining in value and substance. It is unclear if this is coincidence or correlation, but bitcoin is showing future bull behavior as Italy undergoes serious financial change, and many investors are jumping into the foray without asking questions.

The South Korean government evidently wants to ease off on cryptocurrency regulation. On Monday, it became apparent that the government will focus on making cryptocurrency trading a lot easier and more straightforward. In another development, it seems the country’s National Assembly wants to allow ICOs once again.

Another Regulatory Development in South Korea

A lot of things are happening in the world of cryptocurrency these days. Regulators all over the world are keeping close tabs on this industry, which ironically helps to legitimize it. South Korea seems to be leading the charge in this regard, even though some of its existing regulations will be revised in the very near future.

Some time ago, the South Korean government made itillegalto conduct initial coin offerings in the country. This was mainly because ICOs posed a legitimate threat to financial stability. Moreover, the number of ICO scams became rather worrisome, and a harsh course of action seemed more than warranted at that time.

Fast forward to today, and the National Assembly is seemingly looking to reverse that hasty decision. A newproposal would allow for domestic initial coin offerings in the future. Since the total ban on this business model took place last September, no steps had been taken to rectify the situation. As such, this new development has taken a lot of people by surprise.

As it happens, the National Assembly has very good reason to change its approach. Various South Korean enterprises have moved their businesses to other countries where initial coin offerings are allowed to take place. Switzerland has become an increasingly popular nation in this regard.

Under the new proposal, the National Assembly will introduce a legislative ecosystem which will allow ICOsto thrive. This will be done under very strict conditions which primarily focus on investor protection provisions. This seems to be a more than sensible approach, as investors direly need to be protected when it comes to ICOs.

Nevertheless, this is still just a proposal at this stage, and nothing has been officially approved just yet. Even if it were, it remains to be seen whether or not any initial coin offerings will be organized in South Korea. Given the country’s rather hostile approach toward this business model in the past, it will be interesting to see how this situation unfolds in the coming weeks and months.

Most financial assets are volatile in different degrees. Bitcoin price volatility is known to be highly significant. It suffers from dramatic short-term price fluctuations conveying downside risk. However, from a long-term perspective, Bitcoin’s price is substantially up since early 2017.

Bitcoin’s Long-Term Skyrocketing Trajectory

Bitcoin is down considerably since early January 2017. However, if we calm the jitters caused by short-term Bitcoin price fluctuations and focus on the long-term trend, we can see that the cryptocurrency continues to perform spectacularly. As Ran NeuNer recently tweeted, “Bitcoin down 50% this year but still up 700% since 1 Jan. 2017.”

Granted, if you entered the market after January 2017, this information might not be relevant. Indeed, if you are a short-term cryptocurrency investor, you might be losing money.

Short-term and long-term investments carry different degrees of risk. Short-term investing carries more downside risk because it more closely resembles gambling.

On the other hand, long-term investment involves holding a vehicle for more than a year, or several years. Therefore, early Bitcoin adopters are doing well, even if they have had to suffer long bear market periods, as shown in the chart below.

As an investor, you’ll probably need a mix of long-term and short-term vehicles. By knowing the differences between these two categories, you should have a good idea of what to expect from your investments — and this knowledge can help you make those choices that are right for you.

The Trend Is Your Friend

For example, The Motley Foolpredicts that the entrance of institutional investors will be detrimental “as it introduces their crypto skepticism and deep pockets into the equation.”

Conversely, others predict that Bitcoin’s price will increase precisely because of the entrance of institutional investors. Explaining why “Bitcoin is a buy despite its continued losses,” Spencer Bogart, blockchain venture capitalist, declared to CNBC:

Every major bank is trying to do something in the space. Either they’re going to be offering bitcoin to their clients, they’re working on a custody platform or they’re opening up a trading desk. A deeper institutionalization of bitcoin is overall positive.

Indeed, there are as many predictions as predictors. But the truth is that financial markets are unpredictable. Long-term investing is less risky than short-term. And, do not forget that “the trend is your friend.”

Do you think the entrance of financial Institutions into the crypto market will affect Bitcoin’s price positively or negatively? Let us know in the comments section below!

This is a paid press release, which contains forward looking statements, and should be treated as advertising or promotional material. Bitcoin.com does not endorse nor support this product/service. Bitcoin.com is not responsible for or liable for any content, accuracy or quality within the press release.

Zug, Switzerland – Patientory Stiftung, a Swiss-based global nonprofit healthcare organization founded to educate and connect adopters of PTOY blockchain, a HIPAA-compliant blockchain that securely stores and manages health information in real time, today announced that it has joined the Enterprise Ethereum Alliance (EEA), the world’s largest open source blockchain initiative.

As a member of the EEA, Patientory Stiftung will collaborate with industry leaders in pursuit of ethereum-based enterprise technology best practices, open standards, and open-source reference architectures. Patientory Stiftung brings these industry leaders together at its Inaugural Blockchain in Healthcare Summit – North America on May 31, 2018. At that time it will also launch and make available the private, permissioned blockchain testnet network, PTOYNet.

“Patientory Stiftung foresees an exciting future for blockchain in the healthcare industry and is thrilled to merge the benefits of the EEA and its other members with what will happen next,” said Mohsen Shafaei, Managing Director of the Patientory Stiftung. “The EEA’s resources will play an integral role in making our vision a reality and we look forward to learning about Ethereum and leveraging its technology to benefit everyone.”

With more than 500 member companies, the EEA membership base represents a wide variety of business sectors from every region of the world, including technology, banking, government, healthcare, energy, pharmaceuticals, marketing, and insurance. The EEA’s industry-focused, member-driven working groups are each tasked with creating and delivering specific advancements to the development and use of ethereum-based technologies.

About The Enterprise Ethereum Alliance
The EEA is an industry-supported, not-for-profit established to build, promote, and broadly support Ethereum-based technology best practices, open standards, and open-source reference architectures. The EEA is helping to evolve Ethereum into an enterprise-grade technology, providing research and development in a range of areas, including privacy, confidentiality, scalability, and security. The EEA is also investigating hybrid architectures that span both permissioned and public Ethereum networks as well as industry-specific application layer working groups.

EEA will collectively develop open industry standards and facilitate collaboration with its member base and is open to any members of the Ethereum community who wish to participate. This open-source framework will enable the mass adoption at a depth and breadth otherwise unachievable in individual corporate silos and provide insight into the future of scalability, privacy, and confidentiality of the public Ethereum permissionless network. For additional information about joining EEA, please reach out to membership@entethalliance.org or visit http://bit.ly/2IV0g2w.

About Patientory Stiftung
The Patientory Stiftung, a global nonprofit healthcare blockchain organization connects healthcare industry adopters of the PTOY blockchain. The PTOY blockchain securely stores and manages health information in real time, and such storage and management is facilitated by a blockchain based token (called “PTOY”). The Patientory Stiftung facilitates the development of standards that are essential to the implementation and adoption of the PTOY platform and token in securely protecting and managing healthcare information. Such standards are necessary for interoperability and auditability and for transparency purposes. These activities will help ensure the safety, reliability and usability of the use of the PTOY platform by its members and the general public, a prerequisite to the wide acceptance of the PTOY platform as a viable means of transacting business by the public and the acceptance of the industry as a whole. To learn more, visit http://bit.ly/2H11m7f.

This is a paid press release. Readers should do their own due diligence before taking any actions related to the promoted company or any of its affiliates or services. Bitcoin.com is not responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in the press release.

Drama is becoming all too common in the world of cryptocurrency. There are a lot of genuine concerns regarding certain projects, especially when it comes to security and the code base. For EOS, a new security statement was issued which doesn’t bode well for the project in its current state.

The EOS Security Concerns

It is always good to see companies conduct a proper security audit of cryptocurrency projects prior to them being released to the public. In the case ofEOS, the project has a massive valuation despite not having a mainnet as of right now. It is evident the value has been heavily inflated by speculation and hype, but it seems all of that will need to be put in check, at least for the time being.

A Medium post by EOSTribe indicates that there are a fair few security concerns regarding the EOS project. That is not necessarily all that surprising, considering that the project has not yet officially launched its mainnet. It is good to see all of these problems come to light prior to the live net launching, although it remains to be seen why these issues are present in the beta version of the EOS platform.

According to researchers, the EOS mainnet will become a “unique target for attack”. Given all of the money raised during the year-long initial coin offering, one would have expected the EOS team to place a strong focus on platform security. That is not entirely the case, though, as it is stillrelatively easyfor malicious actors to cause major harm to this ecosystem. That’s mainly because the existing defenses aren’t sufficient to keep such attacks in check.

The majority of EOS’s functionality will be provided through plugins. While this modular approach is commendable, it also causes a fair few issues. These plugins handle most aspects of the network, including block generation and node connectivity. A node that is producing blocks should not be running any unnecessary plugins, but it remains to be seen if users will do so. In their current state, some of those plugins would allow the chain to be hacked.

As the researchers put it:

One particular plugin we have noticed is the net_api plugin, which provides an API which can be used to control the plugin remotely. If this API is exposed on a public network[,] then anyone with the ability to connect to this network can tell the block producers to disconnect from, or connect to, any other machine. This does not require anything close to a botnet. Without even being a part of the eos-bios network, a Mac Mini could disconnect every peer in the network.

Despite these glaring issues, there’s no reason to dump EOS tokens on the open market either. The problems can be solved with relative ease, and the EOS software will probably undergo major changes prior to being released to the public. Findings like these need to be taken in stride, as they are designed to make the EOS ecosystem more robust in the long run.

EOS' move from the ethereum blockchain to its own mainnet is just a couple of days away, yet its native cryptocurrency is looking indecisive on the price charts.

The cryptocurrency had rallied nearly 500 percent over the six-weeks to April 29 as the news of the mainnet launchrevved up investor excitement. The broad-based rally across the wider cryptocurrency markets in April only added to the bullish sentiment.

Since May 24, however, EOS has been restricted to a narrow trading range of $10–$13, according to Bitfinex data.

The fizzling out of investor enthusiasm may be linked to the identification of security flaws in the EOS platform. On Tuesday, Qihoo 360, a China-based internet security firm, said it had informed developers of potentially serious vulnerabilities in the platform, which now appear to have been patched.

In response, the price of EOS fell from $12 to $10.70, but soon regained the lost ground alongside a $400 rally in bitcoin prices.

Further, the company's lack of responsiveness to issues such as general confusion over the voting procedure for block producers (validators) may have taken the shine off the June 2 launch for investors.

All that said, EOS is still up more than 200 percent from its March low of $3.87 and could shine against bitcoin in the near-term, the technical charts indicate.

EOS/USD daily chart

The above chart shows that EOS is stuck inside a falling channel – a bearish pattern. Further, its failure to retake the rising trendline on May 28 is an encouraging sign for the bears.

However, the outlook would turn bearish only below $10.33 – the low of last Thursday's bullish outside-day candle.

In such a case, EOS will likely find acceptance below the rising channel support (seen today at $9.60) and drop to $9.72 (76.4 percent Fibonacci retracement).

On the higher side, only a convincing move above the rising trendline hurdle (currently seen at $13.45) would revive the bullish outlook and open doors for $20.

While the EOS/USD market looks indecisive, its bitcoin-denominated exchange rate looks all set for a big move higher.

EOS/BTC daily chart

The bull flag breakout seen on April 24 signals a resumption of the rally from the April 17 low of $0.0010 BTC and has opened the doors to 0.0029 BTC (target as per the measured height method, i.e. pole height added to breakout price).

The leader in blockchain news, CoinDesk is a media outlet that strives for the highest journalistic standards and abides by a strict set of editorial policies. CoinDesk is an independent operating subsidiary of Digital Currency Group, which invests in cryptocurrencies and blockchain startups.

Motherboard maker Asus has debuted a new product aimed specifically at cryptocurrency miners.

The H370 Mining Master represents a follow up to last year's B250 Mining Expert, with Asus saying that it "redefined the formula for a second generation" of crypto-related products. The Mining Master notably boasts the ability to support a total of 20 graphics cards (GPUs).

As of press time, it's not clear how much the company will charge for the motherboard or when exactly it will be released. That said, Asus indicated that the hardware will be available "starting in Q3 2018." Asus is planning to showcase its self-proclaimed "blockchain behemoth" during the Computex 2018 event in Taiwan next week.

Other elements of the Mining Expert include a built-in monitoring system that allows users to keep track of the status of the 20 graphics cards plugged into it.

"Less time maintaining your machine means more time mining with it, which is why the H370 Mining Master includes a suite of diagnostic features designed to make your platform easier to manage," Asus wrote in an announcement post published Wednesday.

Asus is one of a growing number of hardware companies looking to capture some of the interest coming from the market for power-hungry crypto miners. As previously reported, ASRock – another maker of motherboards – is moving similar products to market, and GPU makers AMD and Nvidia have both seen their bottom lines boosted thanks to demand from miners for graphics cards (albeit to the chagrin of gamers).

The leader in blockchain news, CoinDesk is a media outlet that strives for the highest journalistic standards and abides by a strict set of editorial policies. CoinDesk is an independent operating subsidiary of Digital Currency Group, which invests in cryptocurrencies and blockchain startups.

Estimates are indicating that the total sum of capital raised by initial coin offerings (ICOs) in May exceeded the total sum raised in April – comprising the first month-over-month increase in the total sum raised by ICOs in 2018 so far.

Month-Over-Month Performance of ICOs Up for First Time in 2018

According to icodata.io, the total sum raised by ICOs in May has exceeded that which was raised in April – comprising the first instance in which month-over-month gain total for the funds raised through initial coin offerings has increased this year.

As of this writing, icodata.io estimates that ICOs have raised approximately $715 million USD during May – a more than 27% increase over April’s total of roughly $516 million.

Mean Total Raised by ICOs Declines in 2018

Although there are an increasing number of significant challenges now facing the ICO industry, such as advertising bans, heightened regulatory hostility in many jurisdictions, and widespread claims that the returns generated by ICOs for investors is declining, initial coin offerings appear to be thriving – with the total sum of funds raised through ICOs in 2018 (estimated to be approximately $5 billion as of this writing) having reached more than 82% of the roughly $6.1 billion raised in 2017.

The average sum raised by initial coin offerings has declined, however, with the mean total raised by 871 ICOs in 2017 equating to just over $7 million – half a million more than the mean total of almost $6.5 million raised by the 780 initial coin offerings of 2018 so far.

Year-Long EOS ICO Expected to Raise $4 Billion

Block.one’s roughly year-long EOS ICO will come to a conclusion on the 1st of June, with analysts predicting that the offering will have raised in excess of $4 billion – making it the largest ICO in history. The EOS initial coin offering began on June 26, 2017.

Despite the enormous sum raised, EOS has garnered controversy within the cryptocurrency community due to EOS’ terms explicitly stating that EOS Tokens do not have any rights, uses, purpose, attributes, “functionalities or features, express or implied, including, without limitation, any uses, purpose, attributes, functionalities or features on the EOS Platform.”

Do you think that the ICO bubble is loosing steam? Share your thoughts in the comments section below!

Images courtesy of Shutterstock

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As credit risk increases and traditional investors look to safeguard their money, one market maker believes Bitcoin may be a more reliable “fear gauge” than the CBOE Volatility Index (VIX).

‘Storing Their Money Under Their Pillow’

According to Equity Armor Investment’s Brian Stutland, the future movement of financial markets may be best predicted by monitoring Bitcoin. The market maker and regular CNBC contributor told the network’s post-market show Fast Money yesterday that “Bitcoin is sort of becoming the new VIX, in sort of getting ahead of credit risk in the banking industry.”

VIX, which stands for the CBOE Volatility Index, is a popular and trusted measurement of both volatility and fear in the traditional financial market. It utilizes S&P 500 stock options prices and is often referred to as the stock market’s “fear gauge.”

Stutland, however, thinks Bitcoin might be better than the VIX. He explained:

There is huge correlation right now between VIX and bitcoin 30 days ago, 30 trading days ago, that is starting to measure out credit risk in the market. That’s what cryptocurrency is becoming. It’s becoming a way to sort of de-risk yourself from credit risk in the banking industry.

Stutland bases his assessment on the fact that the Bitcoin and greater cryptocurrency market is still unregulated and allows for the open and easy transfer of capital, noting:

Bitcoin is a way to for investors to basically move their money off the balance sheets of banks and into their own wallets. Essentially storing their money under their pillow in the form of virtual currency.

Stutland also made note of the fact that increased credit from banks facilitates caution on the part of investors, claiming:

As credit risk increases we get more volatility in the market.

As noted by CNBC, the VIX reached highs of 18.39 yesterday, up from lows of 12.59 on Friday.

Tuesday was decidedly bearish for all three major indexes, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropping almost 500 points at its lowest.

On the flip side, the Bitcoin market saw a bounceback from what had been a brutally bearish downtrend. The market leader is currently trading, at the time of this writing, at $7,520.49, up 5.42 percent over the last 24 hours.

When Bitcoin moves, altcoins follow. Many major market players in the cryptocurrency space saw healthy gains yesterday, with Ripple, Bitcoin Cash, EOS, Stellar, Cardano, IOTA, and TRON all up between 10 and 20 percent over the last 24 hours.

Do you think Bitcoin is a better indicator of fear in the marketplace than the CBOE Volatility Index? Be sure to let us know in the comments below!

The Ledger Nano S is a very prominent cryptocurrency hardware wallet. It is capable of supporting many different currencies, including Bitcoin and Ethereum. Over the years, various currencies have been added to this device. The latest currency is none other than Peercoin.

Most cryptocurrency enthusiasts have all but forgotten aboutPeercoin. It is one of the older cryptocurrencies, albeit one that never gained any big traction. Despite some interesting technical aspects, PPC quickly disappeared into obscurity for some unknown reason. It still exists to this date and development of the coin is still ongoing.

Ledger Supports Peercoin

As such, it is only normal Ledger keeps tabs on this currency. Adding it to the list of supported coins on theLedger Nano Sis somewhat of a surprising development. Even so, it is only normal this long-standing coin is supported as well. Even though it’s not nearly as popular as Bitcoin or Ethereum, Peercoin shouldn’t be overlooked.

It is still too early to tell if there will be much use for PPC in this regard. Having more currencies supported by hardware wallet is a positive trend. It also shows the Ledger team is keeping tabs on which currencies users want to see supported in the long run. As of right now, it seems there are plenty of currencies still to be added in the near future.

It is possible this will spark a renewed interest in Peercoin. The currency has taken a backseat as of late, although it still has a loyal following. As such, other hardware wallet manufacturers may support it as well moving forward. Its reputation speaks volumes, despite the lack of any major developments affecting Peercoin.

Addiction. It’s a human weakness even the most staunchly disciplined among us wrestle with. You may not struggle with the urge to crack open a Heineken at 9 a.m., or light up a cigarette when you’re stressed. But if you check the status of your cryptocurrency portfolio every five minutes, Houston, we may have a problem.

We’ve all seen the memes making the rounds on social. Infuriated women accusing their partners of cheating, when they’re really checking the value of Litecoin. Hilarious. With just enough sprinkling of truth and self-congratulatory boys’ club mentality to make them sit a little uneasy.

Tech addiction is very real and has already become a serious problem with teenagers spending upwards ofnine hoursa day staring at screens. Their grades are suffering, attention spans are dwindling, and too much dependence on Facebook is causing severedepression and anxiety. But what about cryptocurrency addiction?

Is Cryptocurrency Addiction a Thing?

Most of us joke about our HODLing habits and share our (sometimes epic) trading mistakes. And we’re all guilty of staring at our phones too much, willing prices to go up. But there’s a fine line between healthy interest and real addiction that starts to take over your life.

If you’ve moved beyond being glued to your smartphone to having regular heart palpitations, grinding your teeth, and losing money hand over fist, addiction to Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies could be having a seriously detrimental effect on your health (as well as your wallet).

ICOs and cryptocurrency investing have been championed for democratizing investment, bringing new people to the investment world. Anyone with an internet connection and a credit card can get in and join the game – which means that more and more people are. And they’re often ill-equipped to deal with the consequences.

So, the good news for crypto addicts (if you think you might be one) is that you no longer have to go it alone. At last, ahospitalin the UK is opening up a treatment center for cryptocurrency addicts.

Rehab for Crypto Addicts

With the sheer volume of scam ICOs and opportunists seeking to make money, it’s curious that we haven’t seen a white paper for a cryptocurrency that incentivizes people not to invest in crypto.

While RehabCoin may be the next big crypto on the horizon, it seems the first of many an establishment to capitalize on the Bitcoin trend is the Castle Craig Hospital in Peeblesshire. That’s somewhere in Scotland, if the name doesn’t ring a bell.

Since this medical facility already offers treatment programs for alcohol and drug addiction, it’s perfectly suited to treat the same symptoms from which crypto addicts suffer. And it will use the same techniques developed for gamblers.

Indeed, with calamitous lows and skyrocketing highs, the volatility and uncertainty of cryptocurrency investing is rather like playing Russian Roulette. It’s not hard to see its appeal to gamblers.

Chris Burn, a gambling therapist at Castle Craig Hospital, said: “The high risk, fluctuating cryptocurrency market appeals to the problem gambler.” He also postulated that purchasing Bitcoin provides “excitement and escape from reality.”

As with everything surrounding this nascent industry, there are no official studies or predictions yet on the number of people dealing with crypto addiction. The only thing that’s certain is that the number of rehab centers associated with this growing vice will surely rise.

With most of the top cryptocurrencies still in the green right now, it is evident interesting things are bound to happen. Even so, there are plenty of cracks in this facade, as the TRON price has already lost over 6.5% again in the past 24 hours. This is only a sign of what is to come in the coming days.

TRON Price Takes a few Uppercuts

As one would expect in the world of cryptocurrency, positive momentum cannot be sustained indefinitely. This has been the case for as long as people can remember and will continue to cause problems for many more years. This most recent uptrend was well-received, but it seems the momentum is turning against the cryptocurrencies once again.

Despite what seemed to be a promising start of the week, the upcoming dip seems almost inevitable. It is an unfortunate turn of events, albeit one that is somewhat to be expected. If theTRON priceis any indication, the rest of the markets will drop by at least 5% in the coming hours. That is anything but good news for speculators and investors.

In the case of the TRON price, its value has dropped to just above $0,06 once again. This is somewhat on par with how most people consider TRON to be valued based on the existing technology. Even so, it is possible that will not be the bottom for the TRON price either. If this downturn continues, the price might lose another 5-10% in the next 48 hours.

Even though TRON has solidtrading volumeover the past 24 hours, it is simply insufficient to maintain any stability. With $432.65m in trades over the past 24 hours, there is no shortage of people looking to buy and sell TRON. As of right now, sellers clearly dominate the market, and that bearish pressure will not necessarily relent anytime soon.

As one would come to expect from TRX, South Korean markets dominate the trading volume virtually every day. These past 24 hours are no different, with both Upbit and Bithumb firmly in the lead. Binance’s BTC market comes in third place. An interesting mix of trading platforms, albeit nothing overly amazing.

The big question is how things will evolve from here on out. For the TRON price, finding stable support needs to happen sooner or later, but that doesn’t appear to be happening. Even so, cryptocurrency markets are incredibly unpredictable, and anything can and will happen over time.

Blockchain technology has the ability to transform the retail and consumer goods value chain. The blockchain’s ability to track and trace products and record transactions and contracts will lead to widespread adoption in these two sectors in the next five years, with those companies which fail to leverage this new technology risking falling behind. This is according to a report by Deloitte which cites changing consumer demands as a key reason for both industries to turn to blockchain technology. In its report titled “New Tech on the Block”, Deloitte also revealed that it is developing its own blockchain solutions to help address challenges in these sectors.

The Potential To Disrupt

Not only will blockchain tech solve many of the existing challenges, it will also foster innovation which will solve challenges that we didn’t even know existed. Deloitte’s report broke down blockchain utilization into three levels, with the first being the storage of digital records. The peer-to-peer exchange of digital assets without trusted intermediaries was identified as the second level, while the automatic execution of smart contracts was identified as the third.

Quoting a survey by Gartner that estimated the enterprise blockchain industry to be worth $176 billion by 2025, the researchers expressed optimism that in the next five years, blockchain will be a standard tool for many enterprises, with early adopters likely to stay ahead in the long run.

The retail and CPG supply chains have continued to uphold tedious paper-based processes which limit transparency and collaboration between stakeholders. The blockchain will change all this through its four main advantages, which the report identified as auditability which facilitates traceability, smart contracts which enhance flexibility, immutability which enables compliance, and disintermediation which brings about effective stakeholder management. The blockchain’s biggest impact on the retail and CPG supply chains will, however, relate to traceability, an issue that costs these sectors millions every year and which undermines their integrity. The blockchain is able to provide a full audit trail which will protect end consumers from counterfeit products and also give enterprises confidence in the authenticity of goods.

The Power Shift

The biggest beneficiary in the long run will be the consumer, with blockchains facilitating a significant power shift from the retailer to the consumer. With blockchain tech facilitating peer-to-peer transactions, there will be a great reduction in the need for intermediaries between producers and consumers. The result will be a restructuring of the existing market setup in both industries. However, the CPG industry must strive to take advantage of this change to establish better and more direct relationships with consumers. On the other hand, retailers must use blockchains to serve their customers better or risk facing extinction in the same way online retailers are slowly pushing traditional brick and mortar stores out of business.

Blockchain technology should not be looked at as a tactical response to a standard technological problem, the report maintains. Rather, it should be combined with other emerging technologies in order for enterprises to reap maximum benefits. Industries that have prior experience in such technologies as big data, the Internet of Things, and artificial intelligence are likely to build successful blockchain applications.

So, what are the practical applications of blockchain technology in the retail and CPG sectors? The report identified the use cases as falling into three categories: consumer, supply chain, and payments & contracts. In the consumer use case group, some of the applications include locating stolen products, smart loyalty programs, and targeted recalls of defective or unsafe products. In the supply chain use case group, applications include verifying the authenticity of products, curbing fraudulent transactions through smart contracts, tracking deliveries, and real-time inventory management. Transparent and auditable digital advertising, faster and cheaper payments, and consumer protection through the maintenance of an immutable digital ledger are some of the identified use cases in the payments and contracts use case group.

Hackers who stole information on thousands of Canadian bank users have demanded $1 million-worth of the cryptocurrency XRP to not release the data trove.

According to a CBC News report Tuesday, the two banks hit by the breach, Bank of Montreal and CIBC's online bank Simplii Financial, have said that the personal information of a total of 90,000 account holders had been taken – including identifying data such as names, account numbers, passwords. The thieves even claimed to have obtained security questions and answers, social insurance numbers and account balances, the report says.

An email sent by the hackers – reportedly from Russia – demanded a ransom of $1 million in XRP, a cryptocurrency developed by blockchain payments startup Ripple, saying they would release the data if it wasn't paid before the close of May 28. It is not clear if the $1 million demand was expected to be paid in a U.S. or Canadian dollar equivalent.

As proof that the breaches did indeed obtain the claimed customer data, the hackers provided information on one customer from each of the two banks.

The email further explained that the hackers had used an algorithm to create account numbers, which had then been used to pose as genuine account holders and get the related security questions reset by the banks. Security measures at the institutions also came under fire, with the message stating:

"They were giving too much permission to half-authenticated account which enabled us to grab all these information. ... [The bank] was not checking if a password was valid until the security question were input correctly."

CBC News said it had contacted both banks over whether any ransom had been paid. "Our practice is not to make payments to fraudsters," Bank of Montreal reportedly said, while Simplii did not directly answer the question.

The leader in blockchain news, CoinDesk is a media outlet that strives for the highest journalistic standards and abides by a strict set of editorial policies. CoinDesk is an independent operating subsidiary of Digital Currency Group, which invests in cryptocurrencies and blockchain startups.

Supply chain management firm Tradeshift has announced plans to further expand into blockchain following a $250 million Series E funding round led by Goldman Sachs and PSP Investments.

The round, which also saw HSBC, H14 and others participate, brings Tradeshift's total funding to more than $400 million and values the firm at $1.1 billion, according to a press release.

The investment will be used for growth initiatives, including strategic investments into emerging technologies like blockchain and artificial intelligence, as well as further expansion in Europe and Asia. The new technologies will be taken forward by its Frontiers division, launched in January.

While the release doesn't make explicit Tradeshift's additional plans for blockchain, the firm launched a B2B payments service called Tradeshift Pay just last week. The cloud-based platform offers supply chain payments, supply chain finance and blockchain-based early payments, the company indicates.

The firm also joined the Linux foundation-backed Hyperledger blockchain consortium in October of last year, saying the move was part of a desire to explore open blockchain technologies in order to accelerate innovation in B2B commerce.

Tradeshift CEO and co-founder Christian Lanng said in the release:

"We have always believed that the future of supply chains is 100 percent digital and that connecting trade is just the first step to a digitally connected economy. This investment will enable us to continue our rapid growth and consolidate our leadership position."

The leader in blockchain news, CoinDesk is a media outlet that strives for the highest journalistic standards and abides by a strict set of editorial policies. CoinDesk is an independent operating subsidiary of Digital Currency Group, which invests in cryptocurrencies and blockchain startups.

TE-FOOD tracks 12,000 pigs, 200,000 chickens, and 2.5 million eggs daily. 2018 is the first time the company will begin tracking cattle, fish & seafood, fruits, and vegetables.

Halal food in great demand by largest religion

With nearly 2 billion Muslims, this partnership has a possibility of impacting over a quarter of the world’s population. Islam is also the fastest growing religion today, meaning more and more people will be looking for halal food as time goes by.

The sheer size of population looking for halal food contribute to estimates saying global halal food markets will reach a value of $2.55 trillion by 2024.

The processes include a top-to-bottom solution for supply chain companies that utilizes physical identification materials, a B2B mobile app, as well as another application for consumers that allows them to check history of food they want to buy.

This will allow the UK enterprise to capture a large portion of the market, as Muslims continue to seek reliable and certified sources of food.

The food tracing market is expected to reach $15.1 billion by 2021, with CAGR ranging from 5.5-8.7%. The growth rate is highest in Asia-Pacific regions at 16.7%, meaning TE-FOOD is in a strategic position to capture growth coming in the next few years.

Benefits of food tracing for non-Muslims

Currently reaching 30 million people and handling more than 400,000 transactions daily, the food traceability solution not only benefits those looking for halal approved foods, but those conscious of where their food came from.

Consumers looking for free-range meats, fair trade products, organic/ non-GMO vegetables, can all benefit from better food tracking solutions. This also holds companies accountable, ensuring that their foods will live up to claims.

Food tracing can also prevent foodborne diseases from spreading, which are responsible for the hospitalization of 700 million people and 400,000 deaths annually.

It appears Verge has suffered another hack, barely one month after the previous attack. According to reports filtering in on online crypto forums, the attackers seem to be using pretty much the same tactics at the last time.

Hacker Used Modified Version of the Previous Attack Vector

According to Bitcointalk user “Ocminer,” the attacker used a modified version of last month’s attack vector to spoof the blockchain. Instead of one algorithm, the hacker used two algorithms to fork the main Verge chain, claiming all the block rewards and earning millions of XVG tokens in the process. Ocminer pointed out the exploit when it was used by hackers last month.

As seen in the image above, both the scrypt and lyra2re algorithms were set to the same infinitesimal difficulty level. Each one was used interchangeably to manipulate transaction blocks time-stamps, enabling the hacker to essentially “manufacture” 25 blocks per minute which amount to 18,250 XVG ($950) per minute. According to Reddit user u/Flenst, the attack appears to be over. The third edit on Flenst’s post reads:

It seems the attack is over, 35.000.000 XVG were generated in a few hours. But this also means there is still no fix, and this is possible at any time again. Meanwhile, the only official info out there is ‘mining pools are DDoS’d’.

Verge Appears to Have no Answers to its 51% Hacking Problem

With today’s hack coming firmly on the heels on the previous hack, the question remains, “is Verge secure?” When Ocminer alerted the crypto community to last month’s hack, the Verge development initially tried to dismiss the claims. They later put up a statement on Twitter acknowledging the hack but called it a “small hash attack.” As at the time of writing this article, the only response from Verge is a tweet saying that some mining pools are under DDoS attack.

it appears some mining pools are under ddos attack, and we are experiencing a delay in our blocks, we are working to resolve this.

The prevailing narrative at the moment is that Verge didn’t solve the problems with its network. The fact that hackers can use essentially the same exploit protocols to initiate a 51% attack is cause for worry for many XVG enthusiasts.

What are your thoughts on the vulnerability of the Verge network to 51% attack? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below.

Online casinos, while lots of fun, have been plagued by numerous issues, with trust being the most significant one. Recently, a blockchain-based platform has embarked on a mission to fix them.

The TruePlay platform was developed in 2017 and quickly gained attention as a viable solution to most of the industry’s problems. Created by Oleksiy Mageramov, Stanislav Makarchuk, and Oleksii Ragozin – veterans of the online gambling industry – TruePlay seeks to create a truly transparent platform that any gambling project would be able to implement.

Their first concern was the players. The backbone of the gambling industry, players were often the ones who suffered the most from the variety of scams, inefficient gambling operators, and rigged algorithms. The TruePlay team believed that the client must always be the winner, and so they presented players with a unique fair gaming control system, where all possible combinations are recorded onto blockchain before the start of the game and cannot be altered during the game, or manipulated in any way, regardless of the bet size. The player experience was also a major issue, that’s why all TruePlay based projects share a single user profile, login and player statistic, and accept a single token – the TPLAY – as payment.

Gambling affiliates always had a rocky relationship with gambling operators, as the latter would often keep the real player statistic away from affiliates, therefore refusing them a fair commission. TruePlay is unique in that it allows for a transparent player ledger, enabling affiliates to see the number of players they brought to the project, their bets, and the commision that results from them. Before TruePlay, affiliates were entirely at the mercy of gambling operators, but with blockchain-based tech, that’s no longer the case.

This new system, quickly hailed as a gamechanger, was adopted by Pokerdom – one of the world’s largest online casinos, which began accepting (TPLAY) utility tokens from TruePlay.io as payment.

A fully licensed casino – FairPlay.io – soon became the first online gambling project to be based on the platform.

TruePlay is issuing TruePlay (TPLAY) – a utility token that provides access to gambling platforms.The TruePlay token (TPLAY) is in its pre-sale period, with a private round for investors of ETH 100 or more currently going on. A public pre-sale is going to be announced soon.

Banks continue to flex their muscles and engage in fintech innovation, opening themselves up in a way previously never thought possible. They were once staunchly resistant to outside intervention, but a recent report from ACI Worldwide and Ovum has revealed that this trend is changing. Almost 90 percent of banks are forging a path toward open banking and real-time initiatives.

What is Open Banking?

The term “open banking” may sound a little scary at first. But open banking doesn’t mean that your financial statements will be on the web for anyone to review. What it does mean for you as a financial services customer is that your bank will become (or already is) part of a network of financial institutions.

This network shares data securely through APIs so that users can interact with other financial institutions. They can transfer funds more easily, compare product offerings, and tailor their banking experience to better suit their needs.

Open banking relies on networks, rather than centralization (sound familiar?). This allows customers to free themselves from the shackles of antiquated financial institutions that fail to act in their interests.

Sandeep Todi, the co-founder and CMO ofRemitr, explains, “Open banking will accelerate the pace of innovation and [give] access to new services. This is achieved while retaining the dependability of banks and the security of money they provide, along with the agility of new service providers who are free to innovate in pockets and in specific niche areas.”

According to the ACI Worldwide and Ovumsurvey, more than 70 percent of banks are now willing to open up their APIs to third-party developers. European banks are leading the charge, with those in Asia and the Americas slightly behind.

Democratizing Access to Banks

Jeff Zhou, the co-founder and CEO of Fig Loans, says, “Open banking initiatives democratize access to bank capabilities. This opens a floodgate for fintech innovation because we get direct access to core bank infrastructure. As a financial services provider, Fig is often at the mercy of bank capabilities. For instance, one of our past banks could not change single entries in a file; they had to delete the entire file. The process to change an entry was to call the bank; they would call a back-office department to cancel the entire file (with no written confirmation on our end), and then we would upload an entirely new file, praying the original was actually canceled.

“Imagine being in the grocery store checkout line, needing to swap an item, and being told you first have to speak to the manager, who dumps your cart out, and then says you can now refill it from scratch. From a bank’s perspective, open banking initiatives will be revolutionary because [they turn] banks into platform providers, allowing them to capture new revenue streams from the innovative fintech products built on their platform[s].”

APIs on the Rise

APIs have been removing integration problems and allowing for collaboration between multiple parties for some time now. And they’re finding their place in modernizing the traditional banking system. This will allow banks which embrace the change to do business with greater agility and offer their customers greater choice by turning their competitors into partners.

Up until recently, banks have built and controlled their own applications for customers, from online banking to cross-border payments. But by using APIs, third-party developers can gain access and build better, more customer-centric applications, offering the innovation and insights that traditional banks may lack.

Real-Time Payments

The report also highlighted an increase in real-time payments, doubling from just 31 percent of payments in 2017 to 62 percent this year. Customers prefer real-time payments and are starting to expect them, with European banks blazing the trail in this direction. As fintech companies continue to push boundaries, offering better, faster, and bolder options, banks will have to make some changes if they want to stay relevant.

Zhou continues, “Real-time payments radically improve our customers’ ability to manage their cash flow and account balances. Today, there is a delay (sometimes up to 3 business days) between making a payment and when it shows up in your account balance. This means customers managing tight budgets jump through a series of mental hoops to reconcile all the places they’ve spent money and if those [payments] are reflected yet in their balance. The result is a significantly tougher time avoiding expensive overdraft and returned payment fees.”

Todi adds, “Real-time payments is fundamental to the always-on economy. If you take a step back and imagine a small manufacturing business raising an invoice on Thursday and getting paid on the same day, they suddenly have the extra liquidity to make wage payments on Friday. That means less working capital requirement, [lower] cost of business, and happier employees. Somewhere down the line, it translates into either more profit (which is good) or cost reductions passed on to customers. Real-time banking thus goes [far] beyond the immediate promise of faster payments. It increases the velocity of money, increases consumption, and directly reduces the cost of household expenses.”

It’s a win for customers, a win for banks, and a win for innovative third-party developers.

Arjun Jayaram, CEO ofpayments tech startupBaton Systems, comments, “The amount of operational and capital inefficiencies that these institutions are already facing, combined with the increase in global regulatory scrutiny and desire for transparency, should make this a priority. There is a lot of potential in distributed ledger technology applications, and with the amount of testing that is being conducted throughout North America, Europe, and Asia, it’s safe to assume that the current banking landscape for payments is on the verge of a major tipping point.”

The Takeaway

The study confirms a trend that we’re already seeing. But while banks initially trembled at the onslaught of fintech innovators, opening themselves up and allowing for real-time payments is a win-win-win for all. However, as always, those who are slow to adopt APIs and prepare for innovation will be pushed aside by consumers.

Open banking and real-time payments are transforming the competitive landscape. Banks can look forward to potential new revenue streams, while consumers can enjoy improved services, wider choice, lower costs, and the freedom that decentralization brings.

The Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) has released a report on trends within the scam economy during 2017. The report identifies cryptocurrency related fraud to comprise less than 1% of the scam activity recorded in Australia last year.

Cryptocurrency Scams Responsible for 0.6% of Australian Losses to Fraud in 2017

The ACCC has published its annual report on the Australian scam economy. The report provides insight into “emerging trends and techniques employed by scammers.”

During 2017, the ACCC, and other pertinent Australian government institutions received “over 200,000 scam reports” corresponding to “losses exceeding $340 million [AUD]” (approximately $258 million USD) – an increase of 13.3% compared with 2016’s total losses.

During 2017, the ACCC attributes $2.1 million AUD ($1.59 million USD approximately) in losses to cryptocurrency scams – a megre 0.617 percent of Australia’s combined losses to scams.

Cryptocurrency Scams Peak During December 2017

The report states that the prevalence of reported cryptocurrency scams was closely correlated to the speculative frenzy surrounding virtual currencies last year.

The states that “In the fourth quarter of 2017, the value and popularity of cryptocurrencies increased worldwide [….] Between January and September 2017, about $100,000 was reported lost per month to scams which had a cryptocurrency angle. However, in the month of December 2017, reported losses to Scamwatch exceeded $700,000 and the average reported loss had jumped from $1885 in January to $13,205.”

The report also states that “With the increased popularity of cryptocurrency speculation in the last quarter of 2017, fake initial coin offerings and other cryptocurrency-related scams were reported […] to the ACCC.”

Many Victims Recommended Scams by Friends

The ACCC describes a variety of different scams involving cryptocurrency that were reported during 2017. In addition to “fake initial coin offerings,” the report states that other scammers “capitalized on the general confusion about how cryptocurrency works and instead of people discovering how to directly buy cryptocurrencies, many found themselves caught up in what were essentially pyramid schemes.” The report adds that “A number of reports showed that victims entered into cryptocurrency-based scams through friends and family who convinced them they were onto a good thing, a classic element of pyramid schemes.”

The report also states that “Not all cryptocurrency-related scams involve victims attempting to invest in stocks or initial coin offerings. Many scammers also ask for payment through cryptocurrencies for a variety of scams because it is easier to remain anonymous while receiving payment. Ransomware scammers for example, commonly ask for payment through Bitcoin.”

Crypto Fraud Dwarfed by Losses Incurred by Other Scams

The ACCC report states that losses to investment scams exceeded $64 million AUD (approximately $48.6 million USD) in 2017 – a 33% increase from 2016. The report also estimates that dating and romance scams accounted for over $42 million AUD (roughly $31.9 USD).

The ACCC also states that “Australian businesses were targeted by business email compromise scams” – resulting in over $22.1 million ($16.8 million USD approximately) being transferred to scammers.

Do you think that the mainstream narrative surrounding cryptocurrency and scams is balanced or embellished? Share your thoughts in the comments section below!

This week, the crypto asset management platform, Blox, announced a new addition to their product lineup. Blox Business is being hailed as the “QuickBooks of crypto” because of the way that it allows companies to compile all of their crypto assets into a single platform.

While businesses with traditional financial assets have enjoyed management platforms for a long time, Blox is the first business-oriented asset management platform for cryptocurrencies. The crypto ecosystem is rapidly expanding as it transitions from an entity relegated to obscurity to an industry worth more than $400 billion, and it requires organizational tools to flourish.

The Crowded Crypto Space

Cryptocurrencies and their accompanying economy are relatively new compared to other financial vehicles that have been around for decades or even longer. Although Bitcoin launched in 2009, it remained a niche preoccupation for only the techiest of the tech-savvy. It was a grand experiment in rebellion, technology, and community, and, nearly a decade after it launched, it finally began attaining serious traction. Its price rose precipitously throughout 2017, and it topped out around $20,000. At its peak, Bitcoin had a market cap in excess of $300 billion.

Impressively, that’s only half the story. There are more than 1,500 other cryptocurrencies that imbue a wide range of values and characteristics. This list includes everything from Ether, the utility token that powers the popular Ethereum blockchain, to Dogecoin, the farcical digital currency that still manages a market cap of nearly $500 million.

These digital currencies are traded across a smattering of crypto exchanges that don’t have a unified list of offerings. Instead, crypto communities have small celebrations when their favorite cryptocurrencies are added to an exchange. Moreover, users are storing their crypto assets in a variety of digital wallets that frequently can’t communicate with one another.

In addition, there is an array of ancillary services that participate in the crypto economy. According to Reuters, there are well over 200 crypto hedge funds that are using this investment approach to turn significant profits through collective crypto investment. The Wall Street Journal notes that crypto hedge funds invested $2 billion in crypto in 2017, and their efforts were rewarded. As the Journal notes, “Reports that one of the largest…was counting its returns in tens of thousands of percentage points hardly hurt their popularity.”

In other words, there are a lot of companies that have acquired a considerable amount of crypto since last year.

Managing the Chaos

It seems like everything about crypto is exciting and enticing, but very little could be considered easy. Buying and selling cryptocurrencies is a challenging task, especially when pursuing so-called alt-coins. Investors are left navigating the many disparate crypto platforms in search of a unified strategy.

That’s where Blox offers a practical solution. Their mobile app or web platform allows users to manage all of their crypto assets from a single screen. With just a few taps on the screen, it’s possible to check account statuses for several different crypto exchanges and to access account balances for a variety of crypto wallets. Meanwhile, users also have access to powerful research and analytics tools that are designed to give businesses a better understanding of their asset’s performance.

Fundamentally, Blox Business is a collaborative product, so representatives from different aspects of the company can view and manage a synchronized presentation of a company’s crypto assets.

The Blox Business rollout includes three plans for supporting their customer base. For individuals with crypto assets between $1 and $2.5 million, Blox offers a “high net” plan that is shareable with two people and provides weekly reporting on asset performance. For companies, Blox provides a “business” and a “corporate” plan where the higher-tiered corporate plan allows for more collaborator as well as providing some additional bells and whistles for its users.

This system is already being utilized by several crypto startups including eToro, Wings, CIVIC, Coinsillium, Aeternity, Chainlinker Capital, Startup Token, and several others. Collectively, Blox is helping clients manage more than $2 billion in crypto assets, and the proliferation of crypto adoption would suggest that they will expand significantly this year.

How it Works & Why it Matters

Blox is powered by their native CDT token, so the platform is equipped and managed by the blockchain. There are usability, reliability and security features that accompany such a designation, but its most important role is as an organizational platform.

Crypto is on the brink of breaking into the mainstream business sector. Major financial institutions and prominent exchanges are beginning to offer Bitcoin-related products, and many professionals are becoming aware of crypto’s transformative possibility in the modern economy.

However, crypto is unlikely to attain all of its possibilities if it is an unmanageable mess. If the process is too complicated, individuals and especially businesses will be slow to adopt, or they may not adopt at all. The latest Blox Business rollout provides a platform that strives to solve this problem, and nothing short of crypto’s future success might be on the line. Fortunately, the management process just got a whole lot easier.